


Not All Goodbyes Are Forever

by Sutured_Wings



Category: Magnum P.I. (TV 2018)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Happy Ending, magnum goes to London, poor babies, post s2ep3
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-01
Updated: 2020-12-01
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:16:03
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,884
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27818875
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sutured_Wings/pseuds/Sutured_Wings
Summary: Higgins runs away from her feelings (literally)
Relationships: Juliet Higgins/Thomas Sullivan Magnum IV
Comments: 10
Kudos: 71





	Not All Goodbyes Are Forever

**Author's Note:**

> Hey guys!  
> Hope you enjoy this little fic set vaguely after 2.03   
> All mistakes are my own

Juliet stared out the window of the main house observing the light on in the guest house. She knew she couldn’t do this anymore from the moment she realized it was Magnum those two were looking for last night. She’d always been willing to sacrifice her life for her missions at Mi6 but there was only one other time she remembered being willing to do anything to save another person and that was with Richard. She wasn’t ready to feel this way again and even if she was she knew she couldn’t be what Magnum wanted or deserved. He should be with someone like Abby, she could tell he really liked her and unlike herself Abby would be able to give him the happy life he deserved after everything he’d been through. She was too complicated, too broken and closed off and too hard to love. He would be better off without knowing anything about the way she felt, without her being her around anymore.   
A few clicks later and she was booked on a flight to London that left in a few hours. She packed all her things away, aside from her laptop, brushed over the keys remembering all the times Magnum ‘borrowed’ it and all their times together. She couldn’t bring herself to actually say goodbye to him, deep down she knew if she was to face him and those warm brown eyes he’d manage to talk her into staying and she couldn’t do that. She grabbed a pen and piece of paper and scribbled a note to him, stuck it to the laptop and quietly snuck into the guest house to leave it in the kitchen. She smiled sadly to herself when she caught a glimpse of Magnum asleep on the couch downstairs instead of in his bed. “Goodbye Thomas,” she whispered as she brushed away a tear and headed out the door to grab her suitcase on the way to the airport. 

Magnum was just returning from the beach after his usual morning out on the surf ski when he noticed Higgins wasn’t out on the deck like she usually was at this time. He knew she seemed quieter yesterday but didn’t want to push her after the day they had but now he was worried so he detoured on his way back to the guest house for a shower to check if she was in her office.   
He walked in and found the Lads moping on the floor, they didn’t even attempt to chase him. That would’ve been enough to send him panicking but he also noticed her laptop missing from its permanent spot on the desk. Something was definitely going on. He turned on his heel to head back to the guest house to grab his phone to give her a call. His worry turned to misery very soon upon finding a note attached to her laptop left on his kitchen table:  
“I’m sorry Magnum I can’t be your partner. I’ve accepted the offer from Mi6 and I’ll be on a plane to London before you even read this. Thought you might need this more than I will. Take care.   
\- Juliet”  
He wished he’d seen it before he headed out to the beach this morning, not that he thought it would’ve made a difference, she must’ve left it there last night and finding it sooner wouldn’t have changed the fact that she was on a plane heading halfway around the world and there was nothing he could do to stop her. 

He headed straight to La Marianna after showering, he was supposed to be meeting Rick, T.C. and Abby anyway but now he needed their help understanding what happened if he had any hope of getting Higgins to come back to Hawaii.   
He walked into the bar painting a smile on his face seeing TC and Rick, they saw straight through his act.   
“What’s up man?” Rick asked as soon as he was in earshot.   
“Higgy’s gone,” he stated simply, dropping his façade.   
“What do you mean she’s gone?” TC frowned at him.   
He showed them the note she left before asking, “did something happen yesterday? Anything that would explain her leaving like this?”   
He knew he sounded desperate and mildly pathetic but he didn’t care. He needed to know why she left so suddenly.   
“I don’t know man she was really worried about you but we all were,” TC answered.   
“She seemed like her usual set other wise,” Rick added.   
Magnum frowned at them not getting the answers he needed when Abby walked over to greet them. He put a smile back on his face as he reached to hug her but even she could tell something was wrong. He explained what happened to her and apologized for being quieter than usually before they all sat down with their drinks.   
“You know you’re in love with her right?” Abby said out of the blue, watching Magnum’s distracted stare while he fiddled with the label in his beer bottle.   
“What?” he asked bringing his attention back to his girlfriend.   
She smiled sadly at him, “Juliet, you know you’re in love with her right?”   
“Since when?” he replied, bewildered.   
“Since as long as I’ve known either of you.” she stated simply. Magnum stared at her in shock not sure what to say.   
“Abby, I -“  
“It’s okay, Thomas. Go to London, go get her back. You deserve to be happy. Both of you.” she said as she got up from the table and kissed his cheek in goodbye.   
Magnum watched her walk away and then turned back to see Rick and TC watching him knowingly.   
“She’s right you know,” Rick said to him, “the last time we saw you this distraught was when you saw Hannah outside the camp.”   
Magnum’s eyes flashed with panic and pain not unnoticed by his friends.   
“She’s not Hannah, Thomas. She must have her reasons and knowing Higgy she probably thinks it’s the best option,” Rick continued.   
Magnum sighed at that, as much as he’d been hurt he knew Higgins would never betray them like that, no matter what.   
“Go get her, man,” TC encouraged, “bring her back home, for all of us. She’s our family now too.” 

Juliet was absentmindedly scrolling through pictures from Hawaii on her phone when a knock on her door startled her. She wasn’t expecting anyone and she didn’t really have friends that would just drop by here. She grabbed her gun and tucked it into her waistband resting one hand on it, ready to pull it out at the slightest hint of threat, before heading to unlock the door. Who she found standing there, soaked from the steady drizzle outside, stunned her into silence. She was frozen just staring, mouth agape.   
“‘Take care’ really?! You do not get to leave without at least saying goodbye,” Magnum said to her trying to contain his smile at the sight of her. He swore he was going to give her an earful for what she did, he was angry. But seeing her standing there, tears welling in her eyes, he couldn’t stay mad at her. Clearly there was more to her leaving than he understood. He dropped his bag, still a step outside her doorway and pulled her into a hug as she managed to mumble, “What are you doing here Magnum?”   
“Your note wasn’t exactly very detailed and you stopped taking my calls. I came to find out why my partner bailed on me at a days notice. And also Abby and I broke up and Rick and T.C. were useless, I needed my best friend,” Magnum explained, following her into her apartment making sure to leave his wet shoes at the door. Not that it made much difference seeing as he was dripping water from everything he had on him.   
Higgins walked into her kitchen to make them some coffee before Magnum spoke again, “Higgy come on talk to me. Why’d you leave like that?”   
“Magnum, you’re making a mess! Can you please for the love of God put some dry clothes on,” Higgins complained evidently recovering from her initial shock of Magnum being in London.   
“It’s not my fault this place is so damn miserably rainy,” Magnum said bitterly, “but I’ll dry the floor,” he finished pulling his damp shirt over his head and using it as a towel for the floor. Higgins couldn’t stop herself from watching the way the muscles in his back and arms shifted under his skin as he moved, luckily for her pride she caught herself staring before he did when he turned to speak to her again, “I’m gonna go get changed but we’re not done talking about this. I deserve a proper answer at least.”  
She hated how hurt he sounded but she knew he was right, he deserved to know. He just hoped she would be able to tell him.   
“Is that my shirt you’re wearing?” Magnum asked, returning to the kitchen in dry clothing with a towel in his hand removing the last of the water from his hair.   
Higgins looked down instinctively, already knowing exactly what she was wearing. She’d found his shirt lying on the floor in the lounge when she went to leave her laptop and the note for him and couldn’t help herself from taking it with her. It smelt like him and she hadn’t taken it off since she got here. But there was no way she was telling him that.   
“Yes but that’s not important,” she said trying to brush the topic away along with her embarrassment.   
“It’s pretty important to me,” Magnum replied softly.   
“Magnum, it’s late and I’m really tired can we please just sleep right now,” she wasn’t really asking but figured instructing wasn’t the best way to handle this situation.   
Magnum studied her for what seemed like an eternity before finally answering gently, “Sure Higgy, but we really have to talk in the morning okay?”   
She was fairly certain his agreement was more related to his jet lag than to her wish to ignore this for longer but she appreciated it anyway, “yes we can talk in the morning. Goodnight Magnum,” she said after she gave him her spare pillow and blanket for the couch and tucked herself into bed. 

“Magnum can you please stop shivering I’m trying to sleep!” Higgins snapped at a chattering Magnum in the fetal position on her couch. She didn’t mean to be so harsh but she was really trying to forget he was even there which was nearly impossible to do when she could constantly hear his presence. She appreciated him coming here but she was still trying desperately to ignore the feelings his kidnapping had stirred days before.   
“I’m sorry, I haven’t been anywhere but Hawaii in a very long time and I didn’t think it would be this cold. But I’ll be quieter, I promise,” Magnum said hugging the blanket closer to him. Unfortunately he really wasn’t in control of his shivering and couldn’t keep his promise.   
“Oh for Gods sake! Just get your arse in bed so I can sleep in peace!” Juliet said with a huff shifting so there was room for him next to her.   
“No, no it’s okay I’ll shut up here,” he replied, not that he’d mind sharing a bed with Higgins but he didn’t want to make her uncomfortable, he’d get warm. Eventually. Hopefully.   
Higgins sighed, knowing well enough that it was for her benefit that he refused, switched the bedside lamp on and said, “Magnum, you have one very thin blanket, are sleeping in boxers and a t-shirt and it’s only going to get colder as it gets later. Just come here. It’s okay.”   
Her eyes met his now that they could see each other in the soft glow cast by the lamp. He got up off the couch as soon as she’d said it was okay, still huddled in the blanket, and crawled into bed next to her. He kept a respectable distance between them despite the fact that all he wanted was to hold her and never let go, just to make sure she never left him again. She turned off the light and, still hearing his shivering (although much less severe) she did something she never thought she would. Higgins closed the space between them, resting her head on his chest and wrapping her arm around his waist, tentatively. Magnum stiffened for a second before he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer, turning his body slightly to face her. It wasn’t exactly the most comfortable position, but he was warm and he could feel her and smell her and that meant he was okay. At least until she pulled away slightly and asked shyly, barely even a whisper, “Magnum, are you comfortable?”   
He let out a small laugh before answering, his breath tickling her cheek, “I have you in my arms, I couldn’t be more comfortable.”   
If the room was any brighter he would’ve seen Juliet Higgins blush bright red, but it wasn’t, so all he heard was her response, “well that’s very sweet but you look as if you’re gonna wake up with a terrible backache in the morning, so you can move,” she shuffled away from him more, giving him the space to make himself more comfortable. He turned over fully facing her now, reached out to where she now lay on her back, wrapped his arm around her and pulled her towards him until their body’s were flash against each other with such ease she forgot to breath.   
He nuzzled into her hair, breathing deeply and mumbled, “Now I really couldn’t be any more comfortable.”   
“Magnum?” Higgins mumbled, shifting herself closer to him.   
“Hmm,” he hummed sleepily into her ear, giving her goosebumps.   
She turned in his arms to face him, resting her hand on his chest, “I know it’s not really any of my business, but you did just show up at my door halfway around the world calling me your best friend...”  
Magnum squinted at her in the darkness, “Higgy what is it?”  
She sighed before getting to her point barely above a whisper, “Why did you and Abby break up?”   
The clouds had cleared since they’d gotten into bed and now the light from the full moon streamed in through the window creating a glow just bright enough that they could read each other’s faces.   
“Higgins,” Magnum started, silently asking if this was really the conversation she wanted to have.   
“Magnum,” she insisted locking eyes with him.   
He sighed, gently brushing away a stray curl from her eyes, before saying, “I believe her exact words were ‘you know you’re in love with her right?’ So you, Juliet, but in the best way possible. Abby and I broke up because she saw sooner what took you moving half way around the world for me to see. You’re the one I love.”   
Tears welled in Higgins eyes, partly they were happy tears because he loved her but mostly they were just overwhelmed, terrified tears. She knew she was in love with him but she was afraid she could never be the person he deserved. She didn’t know how to be vulnerable and open with anyone and was quite certain she was too damaged to ever properly love someone but here was this wonderful, kind, loving man laying in her bed halfway around the world from his home and his family telling her he loved her.   
“Magnum I’m not - I can’t -“ She couldn’t find the word to explain what was going on in her head but not surprisingly he somehow already knew. She’d never understand how he could know her when she didn’t even know herself well enough.   
“Juliet, I know you’re scared and whatever you think you can and can’t or are and aren’t, you’re wrong. You’re everything I’ve ever needed or wanted and you’re the most stubborn and capable person I’ve ever met so I know you can do anything you want to do so please just choose to let yourself love me,” he said softly stroking her cheek with his thumb, brushing away her tears.   
“I - I already do, Thomas,” she let out, “that’s why I left, I thought you’d be better off with Abby and I couldn’t stand to watch that so I left and I hated it and I’m sorry,” she rambled more tears streaming down her face.   
He smiled her when their eyes met and gently brushed his lips against hers. She melted into him at the contact and he deepened the kiss before he pulled away chuckling.   
“What’s so funny?” she asked now calm and happier than she’d been in years.   
“Oh nothing much. Just this is the first time I’ve ever known you to be outright wrong about and it’s the best thing you could ever have been wrong about.”   
She shoved his shoulder playfully rolling her eyes before snuggling closer to him with his arms wrapped tightly around her waist. 

They both returned happily to Hawaii a few days later, after Higgins took Magnum around showing him her favorite places in London along with the stories from her younger days, some of which she’d never told anyone. Neither of them had ever been so happy.


End file.
